Mughal Gardens to open for public from Feb 12

Tulip and primula flowers will be main attraction of Rashtrapati Bhavan's Mughal Gardens, which open for public from Friday.

The world famous Mughal Gardens will remain open for general public from February 12 to March 19, 2016 (except on Mondays which are maintenance days) between 9.30 AM to 4 PM, a press release issued today by Rashtrapati Bhavan said.

People can also visit the Spiritual Garden, Herbal Garden, Bonsai Garden and Musical Garden as part of the annual 'Udyanotsav', which will be opened by President Pranab Mukherjee on Thursday.

Entry and exit for the general public will be from Gate No 35 of the President's Estate, close to where North Avenue meets Rashtrapati Bhavan. Visitors are requested not to bring any water bottles, briefcases, handbags or ladies purses, cameras, radios, transistors, boxes, umbrellas and eatables. "Such articles, if any, will have to be deposited at the entry point," it said.

The Mughal Gardens will be open exclusively on March 20 to special category of visitors -- farmers, differently abled persons, defence, para-military forces and Delhi Police personnel from 9.30 AM to 4 PM. This entry and exit will also be through Gate No 35.

The Tactile Garden will be open for visually-impaired people on March 20 from 11 AM to 4 PM. Entry and exit will be from Gate No 12, situated on Church Road



(next to the North Avenue).

The main attractions of this year's Udyanotsav are tulips and primulas which are blooming in abundance. As they do not last long, they are planted in phases and have been in bloom since the second week of January 2016.

About 12,000 tulips in vivid colours of red, orange and yellow mixed with red, pink, purple and white are expected to be in blossom in phases up to March 10. The tulips have also been grown this year in earthen pots and beds of the Rectangular Garden and Circular Garden, the release said.

Visitors and plant lovers will be able to see a newly developed lotus pond in the Spiritual Garden. Flowering and other house plants have been placed along a vertical wall in Long Garden so that they are able to sustain themselves with limited soil, the release said.

The Long Garden has several beds of roses, including both new and heritage varieties, margined with dwarf trimmed hedge and numerous exotic, bulbous flowering plants.

Flower carpets in magnificent designs will be on display in the central lawns revealing the skill and craft of the gardeners of Rashtrapati Bhavan.

The dominant colour scheme of this year's ornamental flowers is various shades of yellow, red and orange. A small cactus corner, as in previous years, forms part of the Mughal Gardens display, it said.